Shloka 66

कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः

Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma

Devanagari script

ततस्तान्यल्पसाराणि सत्त्वानि क्षुधितानि वै । प्रलयं यान्ति भूयिष्ठं पृथिव्यां पृथिवीपते,पृथ्वीपते! इससे भूतलके थोड़ी शक्तिवाले अधिकांश प्राणी भूखसे व्याकुल होकर मर जाते हैं

Transliteration

tatas tāny alpasārāṇi sattvāni kṣudhitāni vai | pralayaṃ yānti bhūyiṣṭhaṃ pṛthivyāṃ pṛthivīpate ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “Then, O lord of the earth, those creatures of little strength—indeed, driven by hunger—mostly meet destruction upon the earth.”

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

तानिthose

अल्पसाराणिof little strength/essence

सत्त्वानिcreatures, beings

क्षुधितानिhungry

वैindeed, surely

प्रलयम्destruction, dissolution

यान्तिgo, reach (meet with)

भूयिष्ठम्mostly, in great measure

पृथिव्याम्on the earth

पृथिवीपतेO lord of the earth (king)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

pṛthivīpati (addressed king)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Hunger and scarcity disproportionately destroy the weak; therefore, a ruler’s dharma includes preventing famine, protecting vulnerable beings, and sustaining social order through timely provision and compassionate governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a condition of widespread hunger on earth, stating that creatures with little strength, tormented by starvation, largely perish—an image of societal and cosmic distress where survival itself becomes uncertain.